The Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria (SCSN) has clarified its recent call for the removal and prosecution of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, insisting that the position was not driven by religious considerations but by concerns over national unity, institutional credibility and constitutional responsibility.
The Council made the clarification in a press statement issued by its Secretary General, Nafiu Baba Ahmad, following widespread public reactions to a communiqué released after its Annual Pre-Ramadan Conference and General Assembly held on January 28, 2026.
According to the SCSN, its resolution calling for Prof. Amupitan’s removal had been “amplified out of context and grossly misconstrued,” particularly as an attack motivated by religion.
“The Council states unequivocally that its position is not motivated by religion or sectarian considerations, but by grave concerns relating to national cohesion, institutional integrity, constitutionalism, sovereignty, and the dangerous trajectory trailing the Chairman’s antecedents,” the statement said.
The Council noted that Nigeria’s electoral history since independence shows that religion has never been a basis for opposition to electoral leadership, pointing out that most past heads of electoral bodies, including INEC, were Christians and were accepted without controversy.
It stated that out of the 13 chairmen who have headed Nigeria’s electoral institutions, only two — Prof. Attahiru Jega and Prof. Mahmood Yakubu — were Muslims, arguing that this historical record invalidates claims of religious bias.
The SCSN said its concern with Prof. Amupitan stems from a legal brief he reportedly authored in 2020, which it described as containing “toxic, provocative and deeply prejudicial assertions” against Nigerian Muslims, Northern Nigeria and the historic Sokoto Caliphate.
Of particular concern, the Council said, were claims of a so-called “Christian genocide” and attempts to link contemporary insecurity in Northern Nigeria to the 19th-century jihad of Sheikh Uthman bin Fodio, describing such assertions as historically inaccurate and destabilising.
“These claims are not only false but profoundly dangerous in a fragile, multi-religious federation such as Nigeria,” the statement added.
The Council also expressed concern that such claims were allegedly presented to foreign actors, portraying Nigeria as a theatre of religious extermination and inviting external pressure based on what it described as false premises.
According to the SCSN, credible humanitarian data show that insecurity in Northern Nigeria is complex and driven by terrorism, banditry, poverty, governance failures and criminality, stressing that both Muslims and Christians have been victims, with Muslims constituting the majority of casualties in many affected states.
It further noted that Prof. Amupitan has neither denied authorship of the controversial document nor issued a public apology or retraction since the issues were raised.
The Council claimed that the Federal Government had been forced to publicly debunk the allegations internationally, allegedly incurring financial and diplomatic costs, including reports of payments to foreign lobbyists to counter the narrative.
“In any responsible society, such consequences alone constitute sufficient grounds for resignation, removal and legal accountability,” the SCSN said.
The Council reiterated its call for constitutional and legal processes to be followed in addressing the matter, stressing that its position is based solely on issues of character, conduct and credibility, not religion.
It also appealed to the Christian community not to be misled by what it described as divisive narratives, reaffirming its commitment to peaceful coexistence, mutual respect and justice for all Nigerians, regardless of faith.
